And The Other
by Scripta Lexicona
Summary: Follows "And That". Roxas' POV. AU. Implied AkuRoku. Rate for mild language. Terribly sorry about putting under Spanish! My mouse slipped.


AN: The bunnies have been prolific. Lots of thanks to my wonderful husband who was a great deal of help, even when he didn't realize it. Especially for the title, since I kind of wrote myself into a corner there.

Also, some of you have faved the first two stories, which has made me very happy. But I'd love some reviews on them, too, if you wouldn't mind. Please enjoy! 

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**And The Other**

"I just don't get what's wrong with him lately," Roxas complained with a frown. He stared petulantly at the other students walking around campus. Most of them looked relaxed, happily anticipating the coming month-long break. Normally he would have been joining them. But thanks to his … boyfriend? Friend with benefits? Lover? He cringed internally at the term. Thanks to _Axel_ he was irritated and a little worried instead.

There were really only four people here that he felt he knew well enough to talk to about his concerns. One was Axel himself, so that was out. The second was Naminé. Unfortunately he'd pissed her off for about the sixth time this semester by accidentally destroying some of her English notes that he'd borrowed to prep for the final. At the rate he was going with her, she'd probably start flinging her pencils as projectile weapons at the mere sight of him, just on general principle. In fact, note to self: Keep her away from the cutlery at Christmas.

The third person was Sora and normally Roxas would never have hesitated to bring his problems to the brunet. Despite only being cousins and having the difficulty of living in different cities, Sora had been one of Roxas' closest friends growing up and also his favorite relative. Roxas often felt like Sora was the brother he'd never had to actually go through the hassle of living with. The only other person Roxas was possibly more open with than Sora was his grade-school best friend, Hayner, who had, sadly, gone not just to another college but one in an entirely different country. The bastard. So Sora should have been the one he asked for advice. But the fact was Roxas hadn't exactly told Sora about his … relationship – or whatever the hell it was – with Axel and even though Sora seemed to like the redhead well enough, this was just … difficult to explain. It wasn't that he thought Sora would have a problem with it or anything. Roxas supposed he was just nervous because it felt like getting family approval or something equally silly.

So he was down to his fourth option. Not that Riku was the bottom of the barrel by any means. Roxas had known him nearly as long as he'd known Sora, and Sora had known him basically since he'd been old enough to know _anybody_. He only lived two blocks away from Sora and almost every time Roxas' family had gone to visit that branch of the tree, Riku had been there, playing with the brown-haired boy. Therefore it naturally followed that Roxas became friends with him, too, though not to the extent that he was with Sora.

As luck would have it, Riku had also chosen to attend the state's main university (and he'd certainly had no lack of options). He was currently in his sophomore year, major as yet undeclared though he said he was leaning towards Foreign Studies with a minor in – of all things – Religion. Roxas knew he also took a great deal of Astronomy classes and he wasn't sure when the silver-haired man had time to _breathe_ let alone do anything else. He fully expected Riku to be in school for at least the next decade. Of course after that he'd probably go on to become some bad-ass prof whose classes students would take at least in part just so that they could stare at him for fifty minutes a day. Roxas had never been attracted to a guy other than Axel but even he had to admit that Riku had ethereal good looks. Yep. Looks, brains and he was even athletic. If he hadn't liked him so much, Roxas would probably hate him.

And so Riku, being a friend-who-was-not-family, possessing of a sound mind, and simply _being_ there, was Roxas' go-to man for advice in this matter. Plus, the blond felt – for whatever unknown reason – that he would be sympathetic.

"I thought things were going pretty well. But he's been getting weirder the closer we get to break. I mean, we hardly get to see each other as it is, usually just late after we're done studying or whatever. Last night was the worst. All I said was 'I'm going to miss this.' And it's true! I like being with Axel. It's gonna suck not seeing him for a month. But it made him mad for some reason. I just don't get it!" He huffed out a breath which hovered in a visible cloud as he slouched down, his hands fisted inside his hoodie's over-sized pockets.

He was so intent on his irritation that he didn't notice the man next to him was ever-so-slightly shaking his head and holding back a chuckle. Riku brushed a hunk of bangs behind his left ear to take a better look at the younger man. (He'd tied his long hair half back, but the bangs always insisted on hanging in his eyes.) For a moment it seemed as though he was considering what he wanted to say and when he finally spoke there was a decidedly amused tone to his normally even voice.

"Roxas, I don't want to pry and, believe me, I _don't_ want details, but … what were you two doing when you said that?"

Roxas flushed and slouched even further, scrunching his face into his hoodie. "Well, you know…."

"Right," replied Riku clearing his throat a bit. "So ever since you guys … hooked up, you said you haven't really been able to hang out, right?"

Roxas nodded. "Yeah. We both got slammed by end-of-the-semester crap. You must've, too." The older man nodded but waved the point off as unimportant.

"Alright then, can I ask – and keep in mind, I _really_ don't want details – whenever you _have_ actually had the opportunity to see each other, has it ever been _not_ to … you know?"

Roxas was pretty sure his face couldn't reach a brighter shade of red and if he scrunched any further he would be completely _inside_ his hoodie, but he couldn't help himself as he answered Riku's question and subsequently _thought_ about the answer.

"No." Somehow or other Axel had turned Roxas into a nymphomaniac. Or whatever the sex-related version was called. Every time he saw the lanky redhead he had to resist the urge to jump him. And, of course, when they were actually alone he didn't resist. It seemed like he just couldn't get enough. Those lips, that neck. Those collarbones which led to those shoulders that he loved to nip. That chest and, oh, that _stomach_…. Roxas cut his thoughts off abruptly before the already-awkward conversation delved into new levels of uncomfortable. Apparently it wasn't quite soon enough though. Some of his reflections must have been showing on his face because Riku was giving him a look that wavered between amused, embarrassed and vaguely envious.

"You do like Axel, don't you?"

The blond scowled. "I said I do."

Riku rolled his eyes. "Well, did you ever tell _him_ that?" That stumped the other man for a moment.

"I … think I did…."

"Look, ever since you guys got together pretty much all you've been doing is having sex, right? Maybe Axel thinks you're just using him for a release. That'd be enough to piss _me_ off."

Roxas sat up a little as he thought about it. "Why would he think that? We were friends before; why wouldn't we still be? Besides, why wouldn't he just _say_ that's what the problem is?"

"I have no idea. All I'm saying is, maybe next time you get to see each other you should put the physical stuff on hold and actually _talk_." Riku shrugged. "And I'd bet, if you would think about it, you'd realize you miss that, too." He stood suddenly after consulting the watch attached to the long, thick silver-linked chain which was attached to two of his belt loops, the last vestige of his year in high school spent as a Goth. (Sora and Roxas had ribbed him mercilessly about it and claimed laughing rights for the rest of his natural-born life when he finally snapped out of it.) "I've gotta get going. But that's my advice: Talk. And don't worry. I'm sure he wants this to work as much as you do." He smiled down and Roxas returned it with a "Thanks."

The blond watched the silver-haired man go and then sat gazing out into space, thinking. He would have never guessed that his first real relationship would be so _difficult_. Course, he also never guessed that it would be with a guy. That was no doubt part of the problem. For some reason he was feeling a lot more insecure than he suspected he would have been with a woman. Did that even make sense? After all, they were both guys and guys understood each other, right? At least, better than they did women. But maybe that wasn't true. Maybe Axel wasn't totally sure either.

Just like Riku had said, Roxas really _did_ want it to work out. He like Axel a _lot_, more than just the pleasure he got from the sex. They _were_ friends first and that was important to him, too. The blond grimaced to himself as realized that these were all probably things he should be telling _Axel_, also as Riku had said. Well, at least his choice in advisers had been a good one.

So what to do? It was the last day of regular class. Next week would be finals and then break. He couldn't remember exactly what Axel's final schedule was, only that he had one on the very last day while Roxas' last was on Wednesday. He'd be carpooling home with Naminé and Sora on Thursday. Chances of being able to squeeze a heart-to-heart in there somewhere were pretty much nil. Especially since Axel was fast approaching meltdown as one of his "demessors" continued to pile on the nit-picking requirements for his final project.

Then a light bulb went off in his head. Christmas. It was only five days after the end of the term. If he didn't get the opportunity to talk to the redhead, maybe he could find him a gift that would let him know how much he cared. Okay, it was probably a really lame idea, but it was the best he had at the moment. Regardless, this was going to take some serious thought.

As Fate – that coy mistress – would have it, Roxas never did get the opportunity to talk to Axel. He barely even saw the older man, bumping into him a couple times in one of the dining commons and passing each other once in the library. This both depressed him and made him grateful that he'd spent time developing "Plan B", the Christmas present approach.

That one had been a doozy of an idea. Roxas had racked his brain in frustrated aimlessness for two solid days (during study breaks, of course). What the hell could he get another man that would be meaningful? What should he get another man period? Normally he got Sora things like CD's and video games, but that would hardly cut it. It should be more personal. But he just didn't know that much about Axel yet. By the end of the weekend, Roxas was beginning to panic.

And then it came to him. As if by magic he recalled a snippet of a random conversation he'd had with Axel a while ago, before … this. He was almost ridiculously lacking in confidence about the idea but it was the only one he had and he latched onto it like a dog on a peanut butter cracker. It took another two days to find what he was looking for, which surprised him as well. But he wanted it to be as perfect as possible. He even managed to scrape up decent-looking paper and a bow to wrap it in.

By this time it was Wednesday and it was clear that no deep talk would be taking place. Neither, for that matter, would any grand presentation of the gift. Feeling guilty but not knowing what else to do, Roxas put the gift inside a bag and – slipping in behind one of the dorm residents – set it outside Axel's door, hoping that no one would disturb it before the redhead could get to it. He'd put a note with it, taped under the bow:

_Axel,_

_This is for you. Hope the rest of your finals are a breeze. Don't go crazy. This is my home number, if you want to talk over break. You could try the cell too._

_Merry Christmas_

_Love, Roxas_

After one last moment of uncertainty he propped the bag against the door and fled the building before he could change his mind. He was on edge for the rest of the evening as he finished packing, wondering if Axel had gotten the present, and if he had what he thought, and if he would call before Roxas left, and if they might be able to steal a few minutes together.

But he didn't call and Roxas climbed into Naminé's car the next day with a distinctly heavy feeling in his chest. He mostly kept silent during the four hour ride (which was about an hour longer than it should have been because they took Sora home first and his aunt and uncle insisted that they stop for at least a few minutes), trying very hard to ignore the butterflies of dread flailing around inside him. When Naminé reached his house, Roxas managed a smile and a few words for the blond woman, and hugs and responses for his parents inside, but as soon as he was able to retreat to his room he dropped all his things and collapsed face-down on his bed. Futilely, he checked his cell phone. On, strong signal. Nothing. Groaning, he buried his face in his sheets. He'd messed this up, he knew it. Damn, he was such an ass! His imagination went wild as all sorts of scenarios swirled: Axel hadn't gotten the present; Axel _had_ gotten the present and thought it was utterly stupid; Axel was pissed that Roxas hadn't tried to talk to him before he left and had burned the present in effigy.

At this point the blond realized he was being a moron and flung himself up and over onto his back with a frustrated growl. _Be positive!_ he chided himself. It wasn't like Axel had all the free time in the world. He had finals to deal with. Even if he had received the gift and liked it, it was reasonable to assume that he would wait to call until after all his own shit was done. Roxas just needed to be patient. And stop _freaking out_. Yes. Patience and no freaking. That was the plan.

It sounded good in his head but as the days until Christmas slowly wound down and Roxas still hadn't heard _anything_ from the redhead, the little butterflies began doing double-time. Not that Roxas was worrying about it every minute of the day – his parents (mother especially) kept him too busy with holiday preparations to let his brain be occupied by anything else. But during the down times, particularly at night when he was drifting off to sleep, Roxas wondered what Axel was doing and why he hadn't called.

Finally, on Christmas Eve, the blond threw his sense of pride to the wind and tried the other man's cell, figuring that – if nothing else – he could say he wanted to wish him a Merry Christmas. After eight rings it switched over to voice mail and Roxas didn't have the guts to say anything. Quietly, he slipped back into the house where his father's side of the family was gathered, eating and drinking. (And the drinking had apparently reached the correct levels for someone to have started singing carols and be joined by good-natured but generally off-key accompaniment.) Naminé, who had been watching and chuckling, saw him and left the throng.

"Hey," she greeted softly. When all he gave her in return was a tiny smile, she put a finger under his chin and made him look at her. "Are you alright?"

Roxas didn't want to lie to her but didn't want to take the time to explain either. "Yeah, I just … there's something on my mind. It's okay, though." She looked at him a moment longer and he was afraid she was going to press for more, but then she smiled and surprised him by asking,

"So what do you want for Christmas?" For a moment he merely looked at her in confusion.

"What do you mean? You gave me a gift. That DVD I wanted. That _was_ the one I wanted. I did thank you, didn't I?..."

The young woman smiled again and chuckled. "Yes, you did. But…." She grinned and wagged a finger at him, her other hand on her hip. "I don't think that's what you _really_ want." When Roxas continued to give her a blank look, she laughed and said, "That's okay. You don't have to tell me. Just have a very Merry Christmas, Roxas." With a squeeze of the hand and a sisterly kiss on the cheek she moved off to rejoin the throng, this time getting into the singing herself.

Roxas stayed in the hall, mind fixed on the weird dialogue. That girl was_ waaaay_ too intuitive sometimes. It almost seemed like she knew exactly what Roxas was wishing for, which was, of course, to see Axel. Or at least hear from him. But how would she know about that? Had they ever even met? After searching his memory he concluded that, yes, they probably had, but he was pretty sure it was only a brief encounter, one of those times that Roxas had inadvertently destroyed his cousin's study materials.

So what had she been talking about? The blond contemplated the quandary for a few more minutes, decided he'd never figure out the working of her mind, and gave into the festivities after downing quite a bit of his great-aunt's hurricane mix.

Christmas morning Roxas awoke both with a sense of still being drunk and resignation. Once again he thought about calling Axel and this time actually leaving a message if he got the voice mail, but ultimately decided he didn't want to be rude by disturbing his family on Christmas day. A bit unsteadily, he wandered downstairs to see if he could find anything to quell his sudden craving for hamburgers. There were no burgers, obviously, but his mother (still a bit "jolly" herself) was feeling the spirit of the season enough to make them a breakfast of eggs and sausage patties while she worked on the day's feast. This positive start let Roxas relax and he slipped into the merriment of the day as his mother's side of the family (which included Sora) began to arrive, adding noise and life to the house. It was relatively easy to put Axel out of his mind.

Much later that evening they were surprised by the chime of the doorbell. Half the family was engaged in a game of Charades which had been suggested by Sora, though he declined to play himself.

"Who could that be?" Roxas' mother asked, turning towards the door. She started to get up to see but was stopped by Sora.

"Oh, don't worry, Roxas'll get it. You're in the middle of a guess anyway." Roxas' mother sat back down and smiled at her son who gave his cousin a look. The blue-eyed brunet just grinned brightly and said, "Go on, Roxas." The blond shot him another look that promised all manner of retribution for his cheekiness, but acquiesced to his mother's wishes. He took a moment to flip on the outside light then opened the door. And momentarily forgot how to breathe.

Axel was on the other side, shivering in his wool coat with his hands buried in his pockets but wearing a broad smile on his face. And a big red bow tied around his neck.

"Axel?" was the first thing Roxas got out when his body kick-started his lungs back into action.

The redhead grinned widely and shrugged, saying, "I wanted to get you a Christmas present. So…." He indicated the bow on his neck. "To: you, love: me." An amazed smile had been growing on Roxas' face and it now reached rapturous proportions as he flung himself out the door and into Axel's arms. The taller man wrapped one arm tightly around him and used the other to close the door. Roxas just stood there, letting himself enjoy the feeling of the wiry still-shivering body he was wrapped around.

"I thought I messed this up," he finally mumbled into Axel's coat.

"Hmm?" Roxas lifted his head, briefly regretting the movement when the hand that had been lightly stroking his hair moved down to his back.

"I thought I messed this up," he repeated quietly, meeting Axel's eyes and noticing for the first time that he was wearing his glasses. "I thought I pissed you off so bad that you didn't even want to talk to me."

Axel had the grace to look chagrined. "Yeah, sorry about that. It's just that I wanted this to be a complete surprise, so…."

"How did you find my house? I never gave you my address or anything."

Axel grinned widely. "I guess you don't know about the stalker site. It lists the name, school address, home address, school email and current year of every student."

Roxas grimaced. "Creepy."

"Yeah, tell me about it. Anyway, so I got your address from that. Then I got Sora's, used that to get his phone number, and asked him to help me out. Find out where you'd be, make sure you answered the door, that kind of thing."

The blond just looked at him for a second. "Wow. That's totally sneaky. And I can't believe Sora didn't spill it. Oh!" he exclaimed in sudden realization. That must have been what Naminé was talking about. Of course Sora would have told her. For an instant he was worried that she'd be pissed that he hadn't told her but then realized she would have already administered a random ass-beating if that were the case.

"So you did all this for me?" he asked with a touch of coyness.

Axel smiled gently and ran a finger down the side of the blond's face. "Yeah. I wanted to pay you back." He released Roxas to open the flap of the bag slung by his side, pulling out a book. He turned it around to show the cover – a book of Mother Goose rhymes. The younger man's face flushed lightly when he saw it. Roxas had remembered that during a conversation Axel had mentioned how much he'd liked the nursery rhymes as a child and that sometimes he missed them. So Roxas had searched for the perfect Mother Goose book, one that had a decent number of the rhymes. It had been more difficult than he thought it would be but when he finally found one, he had really hit the jackpot. Not only did the book contain many of the verses, but it also had several well-done woodblock etchings and most of the rhymes were prefaced with notes on their origins. It had seemed perfect.

"I wanted to get you something nice," Roxas muttered, looking down. "I thought you might like it."

Axel tilted his head back up with a firm hand, staring intently at him as he answered, "I love it. I think it's probably the best present I've ever gotten. Thank you." Bending down, he laid a long tender kiss on Roxas' lips. When they separated, Roxas grinned and stroked one of the purple tattoos on the redhead's cheeks.

"I think this is one of the best presents I've gotten, too."

Axel grinned wickedly. "There's one more part." He reached into a coat pocket and drew out a sprig of mistletoe, dangling it jauntily above the blond's head. He started to lean down again but Roxas stopped him.

"Wait," the blond requested. "I just wanted you to know … I never meant to imply that this wasn't all about you. That you weren't the most important thing. I mean, the sex is nice. Really, _really_ nice. Yeah." Roxas cleared his throat and went a little red as Axel leered at him in a way that spoke of all things carnal and wonderful. "So. I just wanted to tell you that."

Axel gave a small chuckle and answered, "I know. Sorry if I was kind of … pissy. You're the most important thing, too, and I guess sometimes I … worry." Roxas grinned up at the taller man.

"So I guess we're both idiots, huh?"

Axel laughed. "Looks like." Once again he started to lean down and once again was stopped. The first time he'd looked confused. Now he looked impatient and he raised an irritated brow at the other man.

"Sorry," Roxas offered, though he was holding back a laugh. "I just have to ask. What's with the glasses?"

"Ah. Yeah, well, as Fate would have it, I was due for a new shipment of contacts. But then I got this idea. So it was either contacts" – he raised his left hand, palm up – "or you." He raised the right one then weighed them up and down, ending with the right hand much higher.

"Aw, Axel. That's so sweet." It probably would have sounded more sincere if Roxas hadn't been making a large effort to contain his laughter.

The redhead rolled his eyes and scratched his head. "Yeah, I know. You're turning me into a complete sap, kid."

"Oi!" Roxas retorted, punching him in the arm. Axel just laughed.

"Anyway, I hope you don't mind the 'pseudo-intellectual' look for the next six months."

Roxas grinned and gave him the sexy "come hither" look he'd become so good at. "Nah. It sort of gives you that 'naughty librarian' air."

" 'Naughty librarian'?"

"Yeah. You know, your hips are kind of wide anyway … we could just get you a padded bra and a nice blouse and skirt…." The blond trailed off into peals of laughter as Axel's face became more and more indignant. The redhead effectively shut him up by grabbing him and swooping down on his lips. Roxas moaned happily, wrapping his arms tightly around the taller man's neck and melding his body into Axel's.

They remained that way until Axel realized that one: Soon someone would probably be wondering where the hell Roxas went, and two: The younger man was about one kiss away from knocking the redhead down and getting NC-17 on the front lawn. So with a great deal of reluctance and one last nip at the blond's neck he pulled away and just held the shorter man, giving them both a chance to calm down.

It was none-too-soon either. As Roxas turned the knob to walk back in, the door suddenly swung open to reveal his mother with Sora close behind, a worried look on his face. But when he saw they were still decent and in the act of coming inside, he relaxed and grinned. Roxas renewed his vow of retribution against his cousin.

His mother was understandably confused by the strange young man who had appeared on her doorstep, but when Roxas explained that he was a college friend who had dropped in as a Christmas surprise – without going into exact details – she welcomed him in to join the festivities and even graciously offered him a room if he wanted to stay for a few days, which Axel immediately but politely accepted, the burden of having to find – and pay – for a hotel room off his mind. Roxas hid a smile doubting that the room would see much use. Not that they'd be doing _that_ with his parents around, but it was still nice to sleep together.

"Why don't you let Roxas show Axel his room so he can put his things down and then he can introduce him to everyone?" Sora suggested. As he steered Roxas' mother back into the family room he gave the blond a wink and another cheeky grin. Roxas twitched, torn between thanking the brunet and clubbing him with one of his own over-sized shoes. Axel just laughed, slipping a hand into one of the younger man's as he was led upstairs. Roxas grinned back at him. This was going to be a great vacation.

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Originally written 19 Mar. '08 


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